NTPC Subsidiary Invites Bids for 7 MW Rooftop Solar Systems in Odisha

EV Charging Firm ROADGRID Raises ₹120 Million in Pre-Series A Round

BIRAC Invites Proposals for Biomass-to-Green Hydrogen Pilot Projects

Trump Withdraws US from Global Climate Pacts, Solar Alliance, and IRENA

POWERGRID Wins 3 GW Renewable Energy Transmission Projects in Karnataka

Daily News Wrap-Up: Andhra Pradesh Approves ₹158 Billion in Clean Energy Projects

PM Green Wins WBSEDCL’s 250 MW/1,000 MWh Standalone BESS Auction

China Issues Guidance on Strengthening Solar Intellectual Property Rights

SECI Tenders BoS Package for 700 MW Solar Project in Gujarat

Germany Adds 16.4 GW of Solar Capacity in 2025

<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/amazon_polly_88881.mp3?version=1767935706">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table>China’s National Intellectual Property Administration (<a href="https://english.cnipa.gov.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CNIPA</a>) and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (<a href="https://www.miit.gov.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MIIT</a>) have issued a guidance document to further strengthen intellectual property protection in the solar industry.
The document sets key tasks for the solar industry and calls for a focus on important links in the solar industry supply chain, strengthening intellectual property protection, and enhancing risk management.
It also calls for a focus on stimulating the role of intellectual property rights in promoting the construction of a modern solar industry system and supporting the development of a manufacturing and intellectual property powerhouse.
Enhancing Patent Creation and Quality
Through the document, CNIPA and MIIT encourage enterprises to increase research and development investment; accelerate technology advancements in TOPCon, and back-contact, and heterojunction solar module technologies, and strengthen high-value patent layouts.
Solar companies must proactively reserve basic patents for advanced technologies, including perovskite and tandem batteries. The document also calls for increased innovation in inverters, key raw materials, equipment, and system components.
Patent mining and cultivation in upstream and downstream links, such as photovoltaic-energy storage integration, intelligent management systems, and integrated operation and maintenance, is encouraged as well.
Faster Patent Examination and Authorization
The guidance document encourages the solar industry to improve the efficiency of patent pre-examination and examination. It suggests leveraging national-level intellectual property protection centers to provide professional, efficient patent pre-examination services for solar enterprises.
It calls for establishing and improving intellectual property risk monitoring and early-warning mechanisms for the solar industry.
The guidance document states that guidance will be provided to enterprises to improve intellectual property compliance management, undertake patent risk analysis, and prevent and respond to potential infringement disputes.
The document also wants the relevant authorities to strengthen tracking and analysis of intellectual property risks in the industry and enhance early intervention capabilities.
CNIPA and MIIT push for the efficient handling of administrative adjudication of disputes.
Through the guidance document, they recommend that intellectual property management departments and industry and information technology departments of provinces with concentrated solar industries should establish specialized mechanisms to resolve patent disputes and handle administrative adjudication cases efficiently.
Additionally, CNIPA and MIIT  encourage establishing a cross-regional joint trial mechanism for the administrative adjudication of solar patent infringement disputes.
Increasing Cross-Agency Coordination
The guidance document supports establishing an information-sharing mechanism. This would include intellectual property management departments regularly sending copies of administrative adjudication case information to the industry, information technology authorities, state-owned assets supervision and management departments, and customs authorities.
the solar industry and information technology authorities must strictly enforce the requirements of the solar manufacturing industry standards. They must also strengthen the dynamic management of the list of enterprises that meet these standards, based on comprehensive evaluations of core patents and administrative rulings on intellectual property infringement.
Additionally, they call for strengthening customs protection of intellectual property rights to prohibit the import and export of solar products that infringe such rights.
Enhancing Mediation and Arbitration for Disputes
The guidance document calls for leveraging the country’s centralized litigation-mediation linkage mechanism to resolve intellectual property disputes in the solar industry.
It encourages regions with the necessary conditions to conduct intellectual property mediation in the solar industry through organizations such as intellectual property protection centers. They must also support industry associations and other social organizations in actively participating in the mediation of disputes involving solar enterprises.
The document encourages qualified arbitration organizations to strengthen the development of professional arbitration teams in the solar industry.
It also supports industry organizations and the issuance of self-regulatory initiatives to respect intellectual property rights.
Overseas Intellectual Property Risk Response 
CNIPA and MIIT say the overseas intellectual property rights protection assistance mechanism for the solar industry must be enhanced. Intellectual property risk prevention for solar enterprises must be improved at international exhibitions, in product exports, and in overseas investments.
Solar companies must also actively cultivate a positive image for Chinese brands and build internationally influential and well-known brands. They must increase trademark protection efforts and crack down on counterfeiting of well-known trademarks and brands, as well as on malicious trademark registration applications.
Such companies must monitor overseas trademark use, work to reduce overseas trademark and domain name squatting. They must promptly and properly handle overseas intellectual property disputes.
Last September, solar module and cell manufacturers LONGi Green Energy Technology and JinkoSolar <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/longi-and-jinkosolar-settlement-global-solar-patent-disputes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that they had reached a global settlement regarding ongoing patent disputes and related legal proceedings.
The last two years have <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/patent-disputes-soar-topcon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">witnessed</a> a surge in intellectual property disputes with the solar industry transitioning from Mono PERC to TOPCon technology, particularly in China, Europe, and the U.S.

The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (<a href="http://english.www.gov.cn/state_council/2014/08/23/content_281474983035940.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MIIT</a>) has issued a draft that proposes several guidelines for the manufacturing capacity of solar components in the country.
China is the largest manufacturer of solar products including, solar panels, solar modules, silicon wafers, and polycrystalline silicon.
The draft states that the implementation of these measures will help the solar photovoltaic manufacturing industry promote sustainable and healthy development. The move comes in the wake of overcapacity in the industry and falling installations in the country.
According to the draft, the production layout and facilities should comply with natural resource development and utilization. The manufacturing units need to adhere to the environmental aspects and energy-saving measures. It also mentions that the manufacturing units should not be constructed in areas close to industrial enterprises, and the government will also exercise strict control over manufacturing facilities that expand their production capabilities. The government will also guide solar manufacturing companies to improve product quality and reduce production costs.
The government wants the manufacturers to spend at least 3% of total sales and not less than RMB 10 million ($1.42 million) in research and development annually. The companies should focus on advanced technology and low production cost.
The draft also mentions that the average conversion efficiency of polycrystalline and monocrystalline modules should not be less than 19% and 22.5%, respectively.
The document further states that the average photoelectric efficiency of silicon-based copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), cadmium telluride (CdTe), and other thin-film components should not be less than 13%, 16%, and 15%, respectively.
According to the document, the average power consumption of existing silicon ingot units should be less than 7.5 kWh/kg. For new units, it should be less than 6.5 kWh/kg if using a polycrystalline ingot furnace.
The average comprehensive power consumption of the crystalline silicon wafer unit should be less than 250,000 kWh/million wafers. For the news units and those undergoing renovation, it should be less than 200,000 kWh/million wafers.
The draft further notes that the average power consumption of crystalline silicon panel facilities should be less than 40,000 kWh/MW and the average power consumption of the membrane module units should be less than 500,000 kWh/MW.
As per the document, the companies should continue to carry out clean production audits. The newly constructed factories should meet the level 1 benchmark requirements as per the ‘Clean Production Evaluation Index System’ of the battery industry. The companies should also try and build green supply chains for procurement, production, marketing, recycling, and logistics.
The draft says that the government will encourage companies to stick to relevant standards of green manufacturing in the solar industry. The companies should conduct an environmental impact assessment according to the law and implement environment-friendly designs. The environmental management system of companies should be as per ‘Administrative Measures of Pollution Discharge Permits.’
The draft also mentions that the power warranty period should not be less than 25 years, and the material warranty period should not be less than 10 years.
The draft says that solar manufacturing projects should strictly implement safety facilities and occupational disease prevention measures and should abide by the ‘Safe Production Law.’
Recently, the National New Energy Consumption Monitoring and Early Warning Center <a href="https://mercomindia.com/china-likely-to-add-over/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">announced</a> the projected addition of new solar and wind power capacities in China in 2020. According to the announcement, China will add 85.1 GW of solar and wind capacity to its grid in 2020, which includes 35.1 GW of wind capacity and 48.45 GW of solar capacity.
These estimates are very aggressive, considering the slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. In comparison, a forecast by consulting firm AECEA (pre-COVID) <a href="https://mercomindia.com/aceca-china-likely-install-23-31-gw-solar-2020/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">projected</a> 23-31 GW of solar capacity to be deployed during 2020.
Earlier, China’s National Energy Administration (<a href="http://www.nea.gov.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">NEA</a>) <a href="https://mercomindia.com/china-sets-subsidy-budget-rmb-1-5-billion-new-solar-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">announced</a> that it plans to provide subsidies of RMB 1.5 billion (~$216.1 million) for new solar power projects in the country this year, according to its ‘construction plan for photovoltaic power generation projects in 2020.’

China Proposes to Streamline Solar Manufacturing Expansion

miit

Get the most relevant India solar and clean energy news.

RECENT POSTS